The Last Night
by hattergems
Summary: A story of a first kiss during free fall, of the fall of a cruel syndicate, of a dangerous human experiment, of Poker Faces shattering. Neither Phantom Thief nor detective have ever seen so much. This is the story of the end. KaiAoko. ShinRan.
1. Chapter 1

This is my first DCMK story. And there will be gratuitous amounts of hurt!Kaitou Kid, hurt!Shinichi Kudo, other torture (story) devices, heists and very dramatic drama in this. I've always had a taste for the histrionic.

**Disclaimer:** Detective Conan, Magic Kaito. Gosho Aoyama pwnz dem.

**Chapter quote:**"KID'S UP HERE SOMEWHERE! DON'T ASK HOW!" – Ginzo Nakamori

&

**-The Last Night-**

hattergems

&

_you've found me, tantei-kun_

&

Saguru Hakuba listlessly headed to his laboratory, not bothering to change out of his school uniform. There was nobody home to tell this British teen what to do.

… Urgh, so _tired_…

The detective wearily glanced up as a restless Watson swirled above him. He held his right arm out as a perch, inviting the bird to land. With a heavy swoop, she settled on his protected forearm. The blond found some treats and held them out to her, stifling a yawn. Between flying back and forth from England, homework, murder cases and Kid heists – there was another one tonight – sleep was becoming dangerously elusive to him.

… And there was that unsettling matter of Conan Edogawa's DNA code being almost exactly the same as one Kaito Kuroba's … Kuroba sure had a lot of 'DNA twins' – first the infamous Kaitou Kid, now that well-known twerp detective. Suspicious – to say the very least. But he wasn't going to mention that to anyone just yet. It hadn't been his business in the first place.

Saguru blinked in surprise, snapping out of his half-daze as Watson refused the offered treats, choosing to peck him hard on the cheek instead. "What is it, girl?" Saguru said quietly to the edgy bird as he took a sweeping look around his laboratory. The filing cabinets, equipment and even the vast mountain of manila folders he had neglected last night were all in place, not a leaf of paper out of order. "There's nothing here, Watson …"

Saguru reeled as the hawk uttered a piercing squawk. The bird went airborne, whapping the side of his face with a sizeable wing. Now in a crouch, Saguru took stock of his surroundings again, sleep-haze burned away by adrenaline. Because Watson was never wrong. But had he really lost his touch so much that he needed Watson to point out intruders to him?

With a harsh screech – a battle cry – the bird plummeted into a steep dive, disappearing behind one of the many cabinets. She appeared again with a night-black trilby grasped in her deadly talons. Oh, shit. Someone really was here. Without another thought, Saguru speed-dialled for the Japanese emergency services.

"… _Ambulance, pol – "_

"Police! Hakuba residence – !" The blond detective was cut short as a rough hand grabbed his shoulder. Reacting instantly, Saguru expertly threw the man, lean trench-coated form shattering some nearby beakers. Damn, if that was his sulphuric acid …

A huge black-clothed torso blocked the blond detective's field of vision. Saguru was among the taller of his Japanese peers, but he had barely enough time to crank his head up to look at this second attacker before he was slammed violently into a wall. Thick fingers wrapped around Saguru's windpipe. His pale flesh was bruising under the force. Oh, crap. There were two of them. How could he take both of them down? With a muffled gasp, the blond grasped the muscled wrist of the hand that was choking him. Then he forced his chin down into the fingers. The ox of a man let go as his knuckles bent under the pressure. Up ahead, Watson was wheeling and shrieking in fury, aiming lethal claws and beak at the thinner man.

Now free, Saguru fell to the floor, landing hands first. Springing back like a cat, he swiftly twisted his torso and kicked his assailant's legs out from underneath him. The giant fell with a leaden thump. Saguru flipped back up onto his feet and darted backwards so the man wouldn't be able to do the same to him. As he moved however, Saguru saw a fast dark blur approaching him. It was the other man. The teen had nowhere to dodge so he took a deep breath just as a fist rammed into his solar plexus. Another punch followed in quick succession, bashing him into the wall. A tile cracked behind him. Judging from the ice-cold flooding his chest, a rib was broken as well.

When his vision finally cleared, Saguru saw one thing.

A tripod.

Shit.

THUD! The piece of science equipment collided against his head and the world instantly dissolved.

Much later, the paramedics would find a seriously concussed blond teen sprawled lifeless and an injured sparrowhawk. The only word they would get out of the young detective was 'heist', presumably referring to the one that he would miss that night.

Also, several folders containing DNA records that Saguru had been mulling over recently would later be discovered mysteriously missing.

&

Every officer stood to attention, fidgeting and twitching, about as much because of the humidity as the agitated anticipation that draped so heavily over the room. Each nerve-wracking minute ticked by with agonising, _impossible_ slowness.

Outside, it continued to pour.

"Damn thief," Inspector Nakamori growled, crushing his cigar butt under heel. It was just past eleven o'clock at night. He added some choice expletives under his breath. The 'wait' part of the heist was always the worse. On top of it all, tonight, that famous midget detective of Mouri's – Edogawa? – had decided to come poke around. Little geek. On nights like this, just one aspirin bottle wasn't enough. At least the Hakuba kid wasn't here. Nakamori was glad that his dear daughter, Aoko, had brought him some dinner.

Suddenly, the Esaki Crystal seemed to wink at him. Nakamori glared severely at the jewel, as if daring it to disappear in front of his eyes. The glorious stone continued to sparkle innocently on its silken cushion. "He's late," the Inspector growled.

"_Fashionably so,"_ a velvety voice corrected. It was soft, insubstantial, and buttery – like a beam of moonlight. And it made everyone jump out of his or her skins. Nakamori whipped around, trying to pinpoint the source of the sound, even though he knew that this particular international criminal could throw his voice anywhere and everywhere – and not only _his_ voice ...

Nevertheless, an inspector had to try.

"KID!" Nakamori roared. "Face me like a man!" Lilting laughter. Nakamori clenched his fists. Stupid thief. When he caught that bastard, he would ...

"_No can do, keibu-san!"_ Kid sang maniacally. He was still nowhere in sight. _"The Esaki Crystal is mine!"_

Nakamori was about to come back at the kaitou with some pithy remark or other when the electricity in the entire mansion cut out, plunging the room into darkness and confusion. "Back-up power," the Inspector ordered sharply, trying for some semblance of control. Kid _lived_ off mayhem, dang it! "Get the back-up power on!" In less than five seconds, his command was realized. Nakamori smiled proudly to himself. His 1412 Taskforce men were the best.

However, Kid was just that bit better. Not that Nakamori would ever admit it.

The lights flickered back on to reveal a white-clad phantom thief hanging suspended upside-down over the jewel's display case by a length of rope, gravity-defying top hat still magically in place. Kid's white-gloved hand was closing around the gem ...

"NO!" the Inspector bellowed, whisking out his gun with skill that he never thought he possessed. A perfect shot sliced the rope, sending the magician thief earthwards. A smattering of applause met his smoking gun – but it was a small victory. With a laugh, Kid found his footing again easily, landing lightly on top of the case, truly a phantom thief. Bloody acrobat, Nakamori thought bitterly.

"Very good, Inspector," Kid commented serenely. Despite all Nakamori's effort, the shimmering gem was now in the thief's long-fingered grasp. Kid was thoughtlessly turning it over and over, letting the light hit the facets at different angles. "You're in rare form tonight."

Nakamori reddened. "GET HIM! _GET HIM!_" he shouted in harmonious unison with his teenage daughter. Great minds really did think alike.

... And the Inspector might have just imagined it, but Kid might have just cried, 'Ooh, I love this game,' as his officers piled on top of the display case, causing a heap more of a mess than Kid had.

"See you next time!" Kid's gleeful voice called. Kid! He had disappeared in that irritating trademark plume of pink smoke of his. Nakamori spun on his heel, looking at all the shadows.

However, International Criminal #1412 was long gone.

But so was one Conan Edogawa, boy detective.

And, god no – where was Aoko Nakamori and the janitor's mop?!

&

"KID!" the Inspector's ferocious daughter snarled, mop viciously thrashing air. "GET BACK HERE, YOU MONKEY!"

Eek! Kid thought, holding his top hat in place as he evaded lithely. Hanging upside-down, the hat could handle, but running away from a crazed Aoko with her weapon of choice – not a chance!

"Ojou-san ..."

_SWIPE!_

"Shut up, thief!"

_DODGE!_

"Pretty please ...?" Kid said hopefully.

_SWIPE!_

"... Huh? You're a lot slower than Kaito ...!"

_DODGE!_

Kid agreed. With ungainly hang-glider struts strapped to his back, he was quite a bit heavier.

"Why do you do it Kid?! Stealing's against the law!"

"Oh?"

_SWIPE!_

"I hate you!"

_DODGE!_

"I can't say the same for you, pretty little miss."

_SWIPE! SWIPE!_

"Didn't I tell you to shut up?!"

_DODGE! BACK FLIP!_

"Yes. Several times, ojou-san."

_SWIPE!_

... CRASH!

"Oh _great_!"

Kid – or rather, _Kaito –_grinned at his childhood friend. "Heh. That _was_ a rather expensive vase, Nakamori-chan."

"Answer my question, Kid!" Aoko snapped, quickly losing interest in the broken ceramic. She had bigger fish to fry.

"If you could please refresh my memory – "

"WHY DO YOU GO AROUND STEALING GAUDY BAUBLES AND MAKING FOOLS OUT OF EVERYONE?!"

Kid winced inwardly. Inspector Nakamori had quite the successor in the making. "The philosophy of the Phantom Thief?" Kid mused, chin in hand. "Hmm …"

Conan Edogawa chose that moment to round the corner. "KID!" the miniature detective yelled, aiming his stun-gun watch. Kid's thoughtful look disappeared, replaced by his customary outrageous grin. "I apologise, but I must cut our meeting short. Another time, Nakamori-chan!"

_POOM!_

"DAMN YOU, KID!" both Aoko and Conan hollered. One because her weapon had somehow transformed into a harmless red rose and the other because his spectacles had suddenly become pink, studded and horn-rimmed.

And it was still relatively early into the night.

&

He was balancing delicately on the flimsy roof piping, seemingly oblivious to the rain. The powerful wind picked up his white cape, the dangling clover charm and blood-red tie, making them whip around theatrically. Kid had always been one for dramatics. Ah, must be the magician streak in him.

Conan was almost bent double, hands on his thighs, trying to catch his breath. Damn, Kid was fast – he moved like a freaking _deer_. It didn't help that the detective was trapped in a pre-schooler's body. As it were, Conan could get no closer to Kid without risking a three-storey fall. All he could do now was hope to distract the thief long enough for Nakamori and the cavalry to arrive. The chances of unmasking the grinning Kid tonight were less than zero percent. Not good odds, he thought wryly. Conan wondered briefly why the thief hadn't already taken off on those white wings of his, but dismissed the thought, putting it down to Kid's downright batshitness.

"Kid," Conan gasped, the rain blurring his glasses – now changed back to their normal state. The bloated moon was overcast. Lightning ruled the skies tonight.

"Oh dear," Kid chirped, sparing him half a glance. The thief was examining the Crystal. "You've found me, tantei-kun."

"Hand over the rock!" Conan snapped, adjusting his stun-gun watch. He did not intend to use it, though. If Kid fainted at this height ... Phantom Thief splatter art.

Suddenly a swirl of white obscured his vision. Bewildered, Conan twirled, trying to make sense of what he was seeing. In the process, he felt a foot slip on the slick wet roof-tiles. Oh god, how he hated this body. The shrunken detective's breath left him as he felt his stomach dropped. Oh crap, he was going to fall ... he was going to fall ...!

He was upright again.

"Kid?" Conan murmured, a bit shakily. A steadying hand was at his elbow. Conan knew he was flushing from embarrassment and frustration. Stupid thief … Stupid tiny body …

... _Stupid Black Organisation!_

"Sorry about throwing you off-balance like that," Kid said. Conan couldn't see the thief's face, but it was sure to have a sharp smirk stapled onto it, all the while staying perfectly emotionless. "It seems your body is not quite fully _developed._"

His humiliated blush became an angry one. Before Conan could retort though, Kid began to titter merrily. Bastard thief.

"Good. I think I have your full attention now, tantei-kun."

... Huh? Conan blinked and looked up. Had it just stopped raining ...? No, Kid had gotten them both under an umbrella. A dazzling _white_ umbrella. _Oi oi._ Kid made a face that could have been called a childish pout, as if wounded by Conan mistrustful stare. "I'd hate for something to befall my favourite critic. Be it flu, or ..." At this point, Kid covered a rough cough in his gloved fist. Others might have taken it at face value and joked that the great Moonlight Magician really was human and why in the world he was doing a heist with a cold, but Conan saw it for what it was. A distraction. Everything with Kid was.

"Cut the bullshit. What is it, Kid?"

"Tut tut, tantei-kun. Language," Kid murmured, but immediately lapsed back into that uncharacteristic contemplative silence. For several moments, they stayed like that, both dripping wet under the white umbrella. Until they heard Nakamori's booming voice.

"KID'S UP HERE SOMEWHERE! DON'T ASK HOW!"

"... The men in black," Kid said rather abruptly. Conan's breath hitched slightly. His plan of 'keep Kid talking until the police get here' flew out of the window like one of Kid's trained doves.

"How do you ...?"

"A little birdie told me," Kid cut in. Then he continued tersely, "What you _should_ know is that they're planning something for you. I'm not sure what exactly, though."

"Me ...?"

"Yes, you. And Shinichi Kudo." As Kid uttered this last name, this _true_ name, he cast a sardonic sidelong glance at the shrunken detective. So the thief did know. Conan didn't know what to think; revelations were coming at him too fast to process. However, his cool still matched the thief's.

"It's one or the other," Conan amended. That earned a derisive chuckle.

"I see. Either way, cover your backside, tantei-kun." ... _I'd hate for something to befall my favourite critic ..._

"Of course," the shorter answered coldly. No duh. Asshole.

The noise of the 1412 Taskforce was getting steadily louder and closer. Nakamori would be all over the thief like a rash in a few seconds.

"Aren't you going to run?" Conan asked, toneless and flat, reminded of their first meeting on top of that hotel when Conan had uttered almost the exact same words. It had been a challenge then, but now, it was more of a farce.

A flash of lightning. Kid's monocle blazed with reflected light. The rumble of thunder almost drowned out the criminal's soft reply. "I'm not going anywhere until someone arrives."

Well, that was certainly different.

"What are you expecting?" Conan queried quietly, curiosity getting the better of him, as it always did.

"Shadows," Kid responded cryptically, darkly. But then Conan couldn't have sworn that the criminal had said anything at all, because his monocled face suddenly broke into a wide grin as the white umbrella snapped closed and vanished. "Well, it's time to get off this roof, tantei-kun! Stay still!"

A huge cloud of pink smoke and Conan felt a whoosh of vertigo. He was then lifted up, carefully manhandled. The shrunken teen yelped in surprise but heeded Kid's warning and didn't struggle. They were in the air, drifting quickly earthwards on Kid's hang-glider.

"Bye, little detective. Take care." Kid chuckled before setting Conan down onto the muddy grass tenderly. The criminal then effortlessly swept skywards again, soaring into the stormy night amidst Inspector Nakamori's cursing.

&

Aoko stared out her window, contemplating her overly eventful night. Who would have thought that a teenage girl would nearly take the elusive Kaitou Kid down? She giggled. His expression when she first swung the mop was priceless! Take that, Kid!

Unexpectedly, she heaved a sigh. Those big indigo eyes ... when they stared at her, she had instantly gone into mop-chase mode. For a second there, she was back at school, chasing her best friend Kaito Kuroba around the classroom as punishment for some prank or other. That was not how she had meant it to be. Because Kid was not Kaito. But those eyes, that face – both had been so freakishly familiar.

However, his expression was much deeper and less guarded than Kaito's usually were. Or maybe it was just guarded on a different level. When she was around Kaito, it felt like there was a wall between them, like Kaito had the door only half-opened to her. Hell, he was _never_ fully open to her. But with Kid ... With Kid, it was as if the one wish of her heart had been granted. With Kid, it was like looking into Kaito's eyes, but with the walls and barriers broken down. How she had wished all these years for Kaito to open up to her.

And then Kid, her greatest enemy, just comes along one night and grants her wish. The irony.

But Kaito was not Kid and Kid was not Kaito, her mind screamed. She couldn't afford to mix the two up! And she didn't like Kid! What the hell was going on here? Maybe she really should go to sleep now ... Aoko buried her head in her hands. Kid was probably just playing mind games, disguising himself as Kaito to get the better of her. The jerk! Anyway, her father had said that Kid was an old man.

As Aoko lay her head down on her pillow and closed her eyes, she did not notice the single tear that trailed down her smooth cheek.

_Kaito ... please, when will you throw away that cold Poker Face of yours and let me truly see you? When will you be strong enough to get rid of that mask? Please, Kaito ..._

&

_Kid was late because of Conan ((hint for future chapters)). And yes, Kid did eventually crash land from bad weather. Just a little detail._

– _hatter/gems_

&


	2. Chapter 2

Please ignore my long disappearance. And keep reading, because I have the entire plot planned out! Well, on with the drama!

**Disclaimer:** Detective Conan, Magic Kaito. Gosho Aoyama pwnz dem.

**Chapter quote:****"**I promise you, we will have both the Project Aryan boys before the sun rises again … But for them: the night has only just begun." – ?

&

**-The Last Night-**

hattergems

&

_it is the beautiful bird which gets caged_

&

Aoko Nakamori appeared to class 2B of Ekoda High the next morning as a brunette tornado. "Oh my god, you know what happened last ni – ahhh!" And the next thing she knew, the rigid back of a seat was rushing up to her face. Just as she screwed her eyes shut though, she felt not the unforgiving edge of the chair that would have certainly knocked her out upon impact, but the wiriness of a strong body. And the scent of roses, stirring buried memories.

Gathering herself, she murmured an abashed thank you, only to be interrupted by a petulant, "Clumsy girl," from a voice she knew only too well. Aoko snapped her head up to glare, but her childhood friend was already in his seat, shaking open his daily newspaper.

"Kaito," she growled before her eyes widened in realisation. "Y-you touched my chest!! PERVERT!!!!"

Still screaming at the very top of her lungs, mop somehow in hand, she brought her weapon down on the newspaper with a force that could have been compared to nuclear fallout ... to only see the flimsy sheets crumple. The magician was already elsewhere.

"KAITO!!!" she screeched, not turning many heads. Since, sadly, this behaviour was all too common in 2B. "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!"

Kaito stuck his tongue out at that, but his face was absolutely scarlet. He looked rather cute with a blush, Aoko thought absently. But then he looked cute with anything besides his damn Poker Face on. "What, would you have liked for your head to be bashed in instead, ahou?!" he called back as he vaulted two desks in one jump, his friend hot on his heels. Aoko's grip on the mop tightened. Kaito had brought up a very good point. However, Aoko wasn't quite that rational at the moment.

"_PERVERT!!!_"

Grinning toothily, Kaito let himself drop from the classroom ceiling, falling in an acrobatic tumble to disappear behind the teacher's desk. "So, what happened last night?" he asked, as if there was no one in the world after his life.

The odd intonations in his voice hinted at something not so savoury and Aoko reddened against her will. Kaito could get under her skin like no one else. "For your information, Hakuba-kun had a break-in at his place!" She checked behind the teacher's desk, not expecting Kaito to still be there. And Aoko had expected right: the only thing there was a ... timer?

The little display read 0:02.

Then 0:01 ...

_POOM!_

The sound reminded her irresistibly of last night, when the Kaitou Kid had set off a smoke bomb and made her mop disappear, substituting it for a fresh red rose. However, since Kaito was not Kid, there was no red rose for such a common occurrence.

"_ARGH Y-YOU –!_"

Kaito was almost howling with laughter. Aoko looked like a mad scientist who just had their crazy experiment blow up in their face. And she was ... steaming. Or that could have just been the extent of her fury. She looked insanely dangerous. Even to Kaito, who was just plain insane. The teen magician gulped and endeavoured to change the subject. "Uh ... about Hakuba. Exactly what happened? He's usually here earl – early..." he trailed off, uncharacteristically tentative. It was the expression on his best friend's face. "... Aoko?"

She had whispered something, barely audible, but it had caught the attention of every student in the form room, unlike their noisy antics from before.

"Dad told me," Aoko repeated, only slightly steadier. "Hakuba-kun was ... really hurt. H-he's in hospital."

&

Conan Edogawa glanced covertly over his shoulder before answering. One could never be one hundred percent sure about things these days.

"So, Hattori, have you everything prepared for tonight?" Conan asked casually. He was on the move. The shrunken detective didn't care to take his chances calling from within the Mouri apartment, in case the place was bugged. Sure, he was getting paranoid, but it was better safe than dead – as always. And, of course, what Kid had stated on that stormy night atop the slick roof had not completely left his thoughts just yet.

Even though the magician had said that the Black Organisation knew that Conan Edogawa and Shinichi Kudo where one and the same, the detective was not overly worried. Not any more, anyhow. Well, for the first few nights, he barely even shut his eyes and never even thought of taking off his glasses, but now, not so much. Because several of his own trusty sources had confirmed Kid's information to be false. Kid's mistake made sense, though – that being one of the very few things that made any sense when International Criminal #1412 was involved. Conan couldn't quite blame him; anyone could have easily made the same error.

Since there actually _was_ a target.

"_No, Kudo, even though you reminded me at every chance you got, I haven't organised everything to the last, damn,_miniscule_ –"_ the Osakan dropped his sarcastic rant, possibly sensing Conan's cold dark-blue glare telepathically. _"... That is to say, yes, pain in the butt as it was. Everything's ready for tonight."_

Conan worked his jaw as unease ran its bony finger down his spine. Since he couldn't do anything about it though, he dismissed it as his heightened paranoia. "Very well, Hattori. I'll be seeing you," Conan said coolly, snapping his phone shut, ending the call. "Tonight," he added to no one in particular.

Tonight, everything was going to happen tonight: a possible confrontation with the Black Organisation, a chance at regaining his true form permanently, an opportunity to take those bastards all down for good. All tonight.

And, in a way that the shrunken detective didn't have an inkling of, he was right. Oh so right.

Not so far away, Kaito Kuroba was also thinking about tonight. However, unlike Conan, he didn't know about this target that the little detective had discovered. The only target that concerned him was tantei-kun himself.

And tantei-kun was concerning him _a lot_. Kaito wondered if the detective even knew _how_ to stay out of trouble. Not that there was any avoiding it any more. Not with snipers in practically every leafy tree, lingering on top every roof, firearms levelled against every window frame, and if hanging around on lampposts hadn't been so conspicuous, they would have been on every single stupid one of them in the whole of Jap-fricking-pan too ...!

Kaito took a breath. Maybe he was getting a bit obsessive. Maybe he should find out why the shadows were after tantei-kun in the first place ...

But he didn't have the time, not with the little detective occupying it all!! And he _still_ hadn't found out exactly what happened with Hakuba, even though the break-in had occurred over a week ago and that he was always the one that found out first, being the all-knowing Kaitou Kid! But he didn't even have time to _eat_, much less ...!!!

Suddenly Kaito felt Poker Face slam down automatically. He closed his eyes. He knew making himself sick with worry, letting the shadows crawl into his world. It was okay. He had heard that Hakuba already woken up and the blond detective's parents were just refusing visitors. He should just calm down. Yes, that was right, just calm down for the heist tonight, just calm –

The magician gave himself whiplash when he started at the soft – no, _ominous_ – rustling of a nearby bush.

Yes, Kaito was even more on edge than he knew.

&

Darkness wrapped its inky tendrils around the two men, stealing away their faces. Which was perfectly fine, for what use did shadows have for faces?

"The Kaitou Kid is watching over the elder Aryan boy like a lynx. Nothing gets past him. We don't know how to –"

A chuckle sliced across the first shadow's words, knifing the sentence short. This new voice was sinister, husky. "Of all things, you are having trouble with a clown-thief whilst trying to capture two boys."

Though this was almost too subdued to be an outright jibe, it drew a heated reply. "You have never dealt with the Kid! Don't you dare –!"

"I dare," the other voice intercepted once more, sounding more than a little like the rustling of papers. However, the first shadow knew it was more dangerous than any paper cut. "I dare because I have neatly removed that bothersome Phantom Thief from tonight's equation."

"No!" came the spluttering, incredulous cry. "How did you manage that?"

A wry smile revealed the sharp glint of white, white teeth before the second answered with that peculiar hoarse note in his voice. Dead autumn leaves. "I have turned the Kid's own stratagem against him. Our illustrious kaitou has done it so many times to Snake that I decided that it was long past time the Organisation learnt from our mistakes."

The other man seemed on the verge of interrupting, but the rasping voice reassured him. "There is no need to be concerned. Just leave it all to me."

It was not so much the words themselves, but the tone – certain; unfaltering; matter-of-fact – that gave the first shadow pause before voicing his next query. "The younger Aryan boy. He is surprisingly slippery, with a curious knack for evading us, even though I am utterly certain that he has no idea what is going on. What do you plan for him?"

"Again, please do not worry," the second shadow assuaged patiently, tone abruptly honeying over. The effect was sickening. "I promise you, we will have both the Project Aryan boys before the sun rises again … But for them: the night has only just begun."

&

Aoko scowled darkly at the magician. "You always have a spare set of clothes on you, damn it," she barked like an army colonel. "What's up with you tonight?"

Blinking his indigo eyes at her, Kaito Kuroba muttered something incomprehensible before bowing his head, too miserable to give a real answer. His teeth might have been chattering too much for him to physically do so anyway.

Inspector Nakamori was frowning too, as he had ever since Kaito had staggered into the university study looking like a drowned rat, and ever since he noticed the pair of burly guards standing at the only exit. They had deflected all his queries. "Whatever possessed you to go outside in weather like this, Kaito-kun?"

About to reply to this, Kaito opened his mouth, only to drop his head into his hands in yet another sneezing fit.

Lines in his brow deepening, Nakamori shook his head. Just then, the door to the study swung open, to reveal the famous owner of the Rose Ruby, Tejima Corporation's CEO Seiichi Tejima with the plans for the latest Kaitou Kid trap rolled up underarm.

Like Nakamori before him, he stopped at the door and questioned the guards' presence, and also like the Inspector, he could only get a "We apologize, but we're not at liberty to tell you," out of the pair. After that, Tejima didn't seem to notice them anymore.

With a hoarse, "Good evening," the businessman nodded to all in general before spreading the designs across an oversized mahogany writing table. Immediately, as if magnetized, both Inspector Nakamori and a drenched Kaito leaned over the schematics, studying intently. Aoko rolled her eyes at the pair them.

As Tejima started to explain the tricks and turns of the Kaitou Kid 'Birdcage' snare, the study door opened once more. Aoko was the only one that noticed.

&

The construction of the Birdcage was fully commission and funded by Japanese authorities expressly to capture the Kaitou Kid, Tejima being one of those officials. All the greatest minds of the architectural field were part of this costly project and it was built in the grounds of one of Japan's most prestigious universities – the very same one they were in, in fact. And in typical Kid fashion, the heist note was opened at the same time as the champagne: right on the day of the Birdcage's inauguration.

The design of the Birdcage was truly and incredibly ingenious, so much so that it actually had the potential to capture the elusive International Criminal #1412 once and for all – this was, if Kaito had not lifted the plans over a month ago. The photocopies were currently strewn from corner to corner on a bench in his secret workroom.

However, there had been a few small additions to the design over that short month, like an emergency lockdown procedure, which Kaito had already foreseen and duly prepared for – nothing overly concerning – and, for some strange reason, vents. The magician pressed his lips together. From the earliest stages o the project, the Birdcage was supposed to be airtight. What imbecile had added air vents? At least the thirty-minute time-lock was still in place. The time-lock meant that the vault could not, under no circumstances – it was just plain impossible – be opened before thirty-minutes had passed since the last time in was locked.

With one last glance at the ink drawings he knew so well, Kaito decided that it was high time he warmed his frozen behind at the roaring old-fashioned fire. However, before he reached his destination, someone grabbed his shirt collar and shoved him deep into the cushy lounge. Involuntarily, a murmur of pure bliss escaped his lips. It felt like all the pent-up tension within him had suddenly melted away. The magician couldn't remember the last time he sat down, or even rested at all, thanks to that trouble magnet, Conan Edogawa.

But who had pushed him down …?

Aoko was standing over him, holding a steaming drink in his face.

"A maid came in to give Tejima-sama his coffee, so I thought I might as well place an order for you Kaitou Kid otakus over there," Aoko said, taking a sip of her own drink. But it wasn't like Kaito was listening anyway.

"Mmm, mocha," he cooed, beaming. His fingers were curled around the colourful mug for warmth. "Thanks Aoko! You know me too well."

Aoko flushed slightly at her friend's blasé comment, but responded seriously, in way of explanation, "You haven't pulled a prank for the entire day, Kaito."

Kaito's purplish eyes went large, and then blinked at her twice. Aoko noted worriedly how contrasting those startling eyes seemed against his abnormally pale complexion. And how the sharp flickering of the indoor fire was showing hollows in his cheeks that she had never seen before. As it were though, Kaito didn't get a reply in before Tejima and Nakamori took their seats, the Inspector barely uttering his daughter a thank you for his coffee.

Apparently continuing a conversation, Tejima growled scratchily, "... Live broadcast should have started by now," before reaching over Kaito's cup for the television remote to the huge LCD that was sunken into an old-style wall.

When the screen came to life, it showed utter chaos.

"Lockdown?! Why the –? Who gave the order for an emergency lockdown?! Kid's not going to arrive until eight!" Nakamori yelled at the LCD. Getting some sense together, he pulled out his police radio. "What's going on there?!"

The footage cut across to the cameras within the Birdcage. It looked as if half the spectators were trapped inside the small vault-like cube, the Rose Ruby twinkling nonchalantly at the heart of the anarchy.

With totally no warning, Kaito bolted to his feet as if electrocuted. His fingers were suddenly too numb to hold the mocha mug, which Aoko could only snatch from mid-air at the very last moment, not spilling a drop, incredibly. Peculiarly, Tejima had suddenly gotten a rather nasty expression on his face, glaring at Kaito's half-empty mug. Aoko thought he should have been ecstatic to have his plush carpet saved from the steaming mess.

"Kaito!" she snapped. Her father was still rambling loudly at his radio, but not so loudly that Kaito wouldn't be able to hear her. Which meant he was ignoring her.

"Please excuse me," the magician said, smiling politely, tone unnaturally level. Almost robotic, but nothing anyone besides a close friend would notice. By now, all colour had drained from his face. All that was left was Poker Face. As always. "I need to leave."

Tejima was now glaring at Kaito.

"Kaito," Aoko repeated firmly, heart pounding inexplicably. "What's wrong?"

The magician wet his lips, but there was no change in his expression. That blasted lop-side smirk. "I haven't eaten anything for over seventeen hours. I think I'll go buy something now."

Aoko's senses immediately screamed 'liar' and a flood of anxiety surged through her body and soul, but only a dark smirk twisted Tejima face. "That's alright, go on, boy," he said, voice characteristically rough. "Wouldn't want you to faint now, would we?"

Kaito's indigo eyes flashed at this odd statement, but he turned to leave without comment. At that very moment, Aoko's fear converged into one shockwave which made her raise her arm after her friend, made her feel like she was trapped underwater, made her cry out softly.

Made her choke a name. "Kaito ..." _Don't go._

The magician looked over his shoulder. There was no forced grin for her; what she got was gentle, sincere, pure. "I'll be back in some, Aoko." And he was gone. Oddly, the two guards followed him out as well. What was going on here? Surely they had nothing to do with Kaito.

And so that was how, instead of the image of his retreating back being her last memory of him for god knows how long, she only remembered his sweet, sweet smile and promise.

&


	3. Chapter 3

Here, have a plotline. Thanks.

**Disclaimer:** Detective Conan, Magic Kaito. Gosho Aoyama pwnz dem.

**Chapter quote:** This was the end. The Black Organisation was finally here.

&

**-The Last Night-**

hattergems

&

_ladies and gentlemen, this is the kaitou kid speaking_

&

In the middle of roaring an order into his police radio, Inspector Nakamori caught a white flash of something in his peripheral, fragile as a snowflake – a feather from one of Kaito-kun's doves perhaps? No. The Inspector's heart skipped a beat when his brain registered that too familiar caricature. It was a Kaitou Kid note drifting down from absolutely nowhere. Nakamori immediately abandoned his radio and dove for the little slip of paper.

"Aoko, it's a Kid note!" Nakamori yelled at his daughter, feverishly grasping air, trying to get at the note, not coming even close once. "Get it!"

The snow-white leaf was wafting down to the empty seat next to Aoko. Some small portion of Nakamori's brain registered that Kaito had pulled another disappearing act on a Kid heist day and that Aoko was looking more than a little teary, but these weren't his primary thoughts at the moment. What mattered right now was the note that his daughter had just ever so reluctantly plucked out of the air and handed to him.

"Aha!" Nakamori exclaimed before reading aloud, "'_I have changed my mind about the heist tonight. My apologies for the inconvenience. Kaitou Kid.'_ WHAT THE HELL?!"

On the other side of the university, Heiji Hattori uttered a similar expression of disbelief.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU _LOST_ HIM?!" Heiji shouted at his cell phone. Not caring to listen to the sheepish apologies on the other line, the Osakan detective severed the connection. Things were going in the weirdest and most unplanned directions, Heiji thought. Had he and Kudo missed that many factors in the equation?

And somehow Kudo had ended up _inside_ the Birdcage. Which was just really, _really_ unexpected.

Just as he was about to message Kudo on the current situation with the BO's target, his phone rang loudly. Heiji fumbled at it gauchely before depressing the answer key, not even looking at the caller ID in his flustered haste. He wasn't expecting a call.

"Hello?"

"_Young mister, you are in no condition to –"_ began a female voice with an echoing quality to it. She must have been far away or in a place with little furnishings to absorb the noise.

"_Ma'am, this is an important call! Please don't interrupt!"_ came a prickly reply before Heiji was finally addressed. "_Ahem, good evening, Heiji Hattori-kun. My name is Saguru Hakuba. There are some urgent matters I must discuss with you. Some of them involving Conan Edogawa ... or should I say,_ Shinichi Kudo, _high school detective__?"_

And Heiji thought, _shit_.

&

"C'mon, Jii-chan, just pick up, pick up, _pick up_!" Kaito whispered under his breath desperately, holding Nakamori-keibu's stolen mobile phone to his ear. "Please, Jii-chan!"

After exactly five rings, the teenage magician knew that his horrifying theory was correct – a theory his brain had spat out the moment he saw tantei-kun small bespectacled face on that LCD screen _inside_ the Birdcage instead of in his usual occupation of plain observing. So he ended the call with a clenched heart.

Going against what the Detective of the West thought, the shrunken detective being caught in the action was not only 'really, _really_ unexpected', but downright fatal in this case. Kaito's unanswered phone call had just confirmed that.

All because of one device that was unique to this oh-so-very-esteemed university: an electromagnetic pulse, which was supposedly being guarded by the same person that had not answered Kaito's phone call just then.

"Oh, Jii-chan," Kaito murmured before keying a few codes into Inspector Nakamori's phone. "This is just so messed up."

The EMP was the key to the Birdcage. Out of all his calculations, Kaito found the pulse along with a system of pulleys and levers to be the most feasible way to get the Birdcage to open up. The shadows must have worked that out as well, so they stole the EMP from him. From the frigging _Phantom Thief Kid_! Kaito gritted his teeth. Putting all irony aside, this meant that those bastards could get into the Birdcage and do what they liked and there was nothing the neighbourhood Phantom Thief could do about it! Getting inside would also mean that all of Kaito's hard work would be unravelled at a press of a button: they would finally have tantei-kun.

There must be a way he could salvage the situation! Maybe there was something he could do if he got to the Birdcage, but for now, the keibu's cell was his only weapon. Closing his eyes on the world that was spinning out of control, Kaito held the phone to his ear one more time.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Kaitou Kid speaking."

&

Conan's first thought as the Birdcage's steel doors bonged shut was: _this is not Kaitou Kid's work_. This sentiment was further established when the announcers stated that Kid had abandoned the heist.

Conan had no intention of capturing any non-violent thief tonight and was only planning to protect, so he had not researched quite enough to know exactly what Kid's heist plans were, but he knew that it would not serve Kid's purpose to have over thirty people crammed so uncomfortably into this room. Conan crinkled his nose and flushed as Ran's leg pressed against his face. This was hardly Kid's style. But then who had herded them into this enclosure, and why? Could it be ...? Was this actually the Black Organisation?

An odd click interrupted the shrunken detective's whirring thoughts. The overhead speakers were suddenly on.

"_Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Kaitou Kid speaking."_ Though the tone was warm with atypical irritation, the phrasing, cadence and unique coolness confirmed that this was no imposter who had hijacked the public announcement system.

"Damn you!" Conan hissed before weaving his way through legs to a microphone. He knew what this was going to be about and was losing patience with the criminal.

"_Tonight, one person will disappear forever if –"_

Conan leapt as high as he could and grabbed the microphone. No time for subtle tranquilizer darts. "Kid!" Conan snapped hotly. "Have you considered your sources to be erroneous?"

An odd pause before, _"Tantei-kun ..."_

Conan took his chance to get some more of his argument in. "I'm not in danger! The only one in danger tonight is Kaito Kuroba. And I have already taken the measures to make sure nothing happens to him!"

The Detective of the East waited for an incisive response from the wily thief, but none came.

"Kid?"

&

The stairs tipped, spiralling nauseously to his right. The world was actually spinning – drunkenly, sickeningly. The layout of the university was suddenly gone from his head. Where was he? Kaito swallowed hard, but his throat was so dry. What was wrong with him? Too many late nights couldn't possibly be causing this. Surely?

"_... I have already taken the measures to make sure nothing happens to him! ... Kid?"_

Kaito paused, panting. He dragged a sleeve across his brow. "Excuse me, tantei-kun? What was that about a Kuroba?"

"_Kaito Kuroba, son of the late world-famous magician Toichi Kuroba! I, for one, have reasonably reliable sources, Kid!"_

"_Conan-kun, what are you doing? What do you mean?"_

"_... Get that little boy off the microphone!"_

Kaito mumbled his own name, not truly comprehending. So that was what the damn guards had been doing. It had taken so long to lose them so he could call Jii! However, why in the world would anyone be after him? Kaito Kuroba was just another high school student, a reputation he had laboured to cultivate.

"... Since when has anyone been able to keep an eye on Kuroba-kun?" Kaito drawled lightly, trying to keep in character. Urgh, so thirsty ...

His careless question stopped the shrunken detective instantaneously. _"What do you know about Kaito Kuroba?"_ the little tantei questioned stridently. _"Answer!"_

He licked his lips. "I know that he has escaped your little guards, tantei-kun," Kaito answered as his shoulder slammed hard into a wall when he lost his balance. Why was everything ... tilting so? It was like he was in a dream ... Maybe if he thought of water, it would appear, he thought as he rubbed his shoulder. "... Oh, ouch."

"_Kid?"_

Did the air-conditioning stop working? It would sure be expensive if those units broke. It was getting uncomfortably warm. "Do you remember my last heist, tantei-kun? You almost fell off the roof ..."

"_What's your point, Kid?!"_

"_Is that what happened, Conan-kun?!"_

The Moonlight Magician walked slowly and awkwardly backwards into a wall for steadiness, legs feeling numb. He barely registered the impact. _Wh – what was happening to him?_

Images rose from Kaito's subconsciousness: Tejima reaching carefully over his mug for the TV remote, Tejima looking angry when Kaito dropped his mocha, only to brighten when he said ...

"_... I haven't eaten anything for over seventeen hours ..."_

The mug had been partially empty, Kaito remembered disturbingly vividly. So that was what had happened.

Tejima. Spiked. His. Drink. And he had been conscious for this long because he only drank half. He wasn't going to last much longer either, though, not on an empty stomach with these kinds of drugs in his body.

... Were those footsteps he was hearing? Kaito frowned, letting himself slide down against the wall, chocolate-brown hair darkening with sweat. Maybe tantei-kun was right. Maybe there actually were people after Kaito Kuroba. Heh.

Humph. The air-conditioning here was truly disgraceful.

&

"_... You almost fell off the roof ..."_

"What's your point, Kid?" Conan growled, Ran now fighting to help him keep possession of the microphone. She was looking distinctly worried. She was saying something, but Conan was all-ears for Kid and ignored her. Did she actually believe Kid? And Kid ... what was up with him? He never slurred his words ...

"_My point is ... There was a sniper in the tree behind you. I moved so I was in between."_

"What?!" Ran gasped. "Conan-kun! Why –"

The little detective's blood turned to ice slush. He remembered the swirl of white, the umbrella, how Kid was so strangely gentle with him. Conan should have known the thief didn't do anything without a reason. Shit, shit _shit!_ The Black Organisation _knew!_ He was dead, everyone he knew was dead! All _DEAD_! He was starting to hyperventilate.

"_Tantei-kun_ – ugh _..."_There was a clattering of something being dropped and the thief never finished his sentence.

"KID!" Conan shouted at the microphone. His world was warping inside-out too fast. The BO knew! And from what Kid had said, they were coming for him right now! _And there was absolutely no way out of the Birdcage anywhere near soon enough!_

Conan punched the wall. Everything was about to go to hell! Any moment now! And the Great Detective of the East couldn't do a damn thing about it!

"Conan-kun," Ran said, her face suddenly next to his. She was clutching his arms, tone anxious. "What is going on? Please, tell me!"

"Ran," he whispered, completely forgetting to tack on a 'nee-chan'. What did it matter anymore? And unlike any time before, he felt the strongest urge to just throw off the damn glasses and crush them under his feet, felt the urge to just scream out to the world his name, his real name ...

He never got around to doing any of this, because at that very moment, the vents poured forth thick smoke, the lights cut out, the air snapped and crackled with electricity from the electromagnetic pulse and the steel doors of the Birdcage made an ear-splitting grating noise, like a dying bird's final screech. A sliver of a gap appeared in between the two metal giants. The people around him sank to their knees, coughing and spluttering as the sleeping gas took effect.

This was the end. The Black Organisation was finally here.

Unexpectedly, arms wrapped around him as he fell. His loved one's voice spoke his name, like the whispering of a red orchid's petals against his cheek. And he called hers, his own voice filled with every grievance of his short, horribly strange life – every hurt, every yearning. But love was there too, so fervent that it consumed them both.

"_Shinichi ..."_

"_... Ran."_

Then the shadows came, as cold and merciless as ever.

&


	4. Chapter 4

Lots and lots of credit goes to **hallow777** for her invaluable suggestions on this chapter. By the way, everyone, she is an incredible person to bounce ideas off!

**Disclaimer:** Detective Conan, Magic Kaito. Gosho Aoyama pwnz dem.

**Chapter quote:** "The day the elusive Kaitou Kid is speaks a lie will be the same day the famous Shinichi Kudo fails to find the One Truth." – Saguru Hakuba

&

**-The Last Night-**

hattergems

&

_you hold within you the past, and, quite possibly, the future of our organisation_

&

"... My name is Saguru Hakuba," the blond detective stated, not giving the riled nurse another iota of notice. If his heart was battering his broken ribcage in anxiety, there was no trace of it over the payphone. "There are some urgent matters I must discuss with you. Some of them involving Conan Edogawa ... or should I say, _Shinichi Kudo_?"

Something muttered sharply on the other line, that something most likely an expletive. Saguru smirked tightly, darkly; the Detective of the West was hooked.

"_K-Ku – What the hell are you on about?!"_ Heiji cried, sounding even more flustered than Saguru had expected, but then nothing could be unexpected of a detective so unpredictable and rash._"Explain yourself now!"_

"No," the Brit replied shortly. Yes, he could do Bastard as well as the Kaitou Kid could pull a Saguru Hakuba – maddeningly well. Anything to get the Osakan's attention fast. When there might still be something left to save from this insidious disaster. "For now, Hattori-kun, you listen to _me_. However, it may already be too late ..."

"_Late?! What's –"_

"Is the public announcement system on?" the injured blond brusquely bit out, sounding exceptionally normal even though he had spoken through clenched teeth. His ribs were in no shape for this at all, much less his skull. If only he hadn't been comatose for so long! If only that darn nurse had gotten off his tail a little earlier! And those men in black that started it all ...

"_PA? No …"_

Click.

"'_Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Kaitou Kid speaking.'"_ That crisp tone and timbre, even through the poor quality phone, could only be one person, but it had an uncharacteristic undercurrent that made Saguru frown.

"_Kid?"_ Heiji said incredulously. "_What is going_ on _already?!"_

"Too late," Saguru muttered, low enough to hide the heaviness that had suddenly set upon him like a saturated cloak. Now it was going to be a long few weeks … or months. Probably years, actually. Damn it. "There is nothing I can do now. I'll be hanging up Hattori-kun –"

"_No, you British bastard!"_ Heiji yelled, beyond enraged at being one step behind, at having Saguru swing bait bare centimetres out of Heiji's grasp. _"Don't you bloody_ dare _hang up until you tell me what the –"_

Thankfully the Osakan shut his mouth to listen to Kid's voice booming over the speakers in the background. It was actually hard to ignore the mesmeric thief. Especially when he wanted to be heard. "'_Tonight, one person will disappear forever if –'"_

As Kid had interrupted Heiji, an unexpected voice cut short the kaitou's words. _"_'_Kid!_ _Have you considered your sources to be erroneous?'"_

"_Kudo!"_ Heiji inhaled. Saguru did not, stress _did not,_ roll his eyes childishly at Heiji's surprise and careless slip up. Which did _not_ mean the blond detective did not roll his eyes. The blond decided to answer the Western Detective's question before either of them ground their teeth to dust.

"Hattori-san, believe me when I say that there is no longer anything that can be done now to alter what is going to happen," Saguru said, deathly sombrely. "This was a trap all of us have fallen into, realizing only too late ... And two people will suffer for it ..."

"'_Tantei-kun ...'"_ Kid trailed off absently.

"'_I'm not in danger! The only one in danger tonight is Kaito Kuroba. And I have already taken the measures to make sure nothing happens to him! ... Kid?'"_

"_Two people?!"_ Heiji repeated Saguru's statement severely. _"Didn't you just hear him? The only one –"_

Saguru scowled. "The day the elusive Kaitou Kid is speaks a lie will be the same day the famous Shinichi Kudo fails to find the One Truth," said the British detective cuttingly. Heiji hissed. "Conan Edogawa _is_ in danger."

"_Then you are an idiot! By what you just said, that means Kudo is right as well!"_ snarled Heiji, at his rope's end.

"Must I repeat myself? _'The day the elusive Kaitou Kid is speaks a lie will be the same day the famous Shinichi Kudo fails to find the One Truth.'_" With such a sense of finality in his stomach, Saguru felt that he could be patient with the Osakan. Since it no longer mattered.

"_Shit,_" Heiji breathed. _"They're_ both_right."_

"Thank you," Saguru said, before adding quietly, "Any moment now …"

"_Any moment …? What'd –"_

Saguru Hakuba set the payphone back down in its cradle on the odd electrical crackling of the EMP obliterating all electrical devices in its vicinity to a point beyond repair and tugged on his Inverness, walking out of the hospital without anyone stopping him. The staff was a bit too tied up for anything more than a few muffled growls. What? It was hard _not_ to learn a few tricks from that class magician that played prank after prank on him at every opportunity.

A magician that they now had to get back at all costs.

Time for the counterattack.

&

His face was covered in small cuts. He was bleeding from a small gash above his left eye and he had to constantly brush the blood away as he shouted at the prone figure beside him, stormy cerulean eyes blazing.

"… YOU STUPID BASTARD, I HAD TWO DOZEN OF THE FINEST OFFICERS THE JAPANESE POLICE FORCE COULD OFFER _GLUED TO YOUR BACK_! HOW THE _HELL_ DID YOU GET AWAY?! ALL MY EFFORT …!" Conan yelled, letting all his hot frustration out. Because, chances were, they had finally been captured by the Black Organisation, without an inkling of what was to come. Screw it all to hell. Why wasn't it _over_ yet?! He was supposed to be _dead_! That was how it went! What did the BO want with him now? This weird collar – _dog leash_, his mind threw up unhelpfully –around his neck meant that he'd still be around a little while more – a collar that most likely contained a tracker and some kind of procedure that would prevent escape, maybe even cause immobilization.

"ARGH!" Conan smashed a fist to the hard ground. Now would be the perfect time to finally test out how hard one had to kick a soccer ball to decapitate a person.

The magician on the receiving end of this furious rant murmured a soft retort that didn't mean anything. Twisting himself to 'face' the taller – he couldn't see a thing – Conan felt a flutter of worry rise within him at this unusually quiet and obliging reaction. From studying the Ekoda High student, Conan could easily declare that Kuroba was anything _but_ quiet and obliging. Was there something really wrong with the wild-haired teen? It was too dark to truly see anything though, or it could by this bump on his head. Did mild concussion affect night vision? He gingerly touched the swollen spot on his skull. Couldn't remember. Conan squinted at his surroundings again – and having somehow lost his glasses during his transit from the Birdcage to wherever 'here' was, he looked just like any other short-sighted child nerd.

However, as disconcerting as Conan found the lack of information he had on his immediate environs, he didn't try to move around to discover more. His right leg was horribly stiff from what must be a beauty of a bruise if he could see. He wasn't that sure about his ankle either. And the shrunken Great Detective of the East wasn't quite prepared to drag himself by the fingers just to find out the length of the walls and the like for himself.

Not when Kuroba already seemed to know.

"This is a perfect cube," the magician said hoarsely, with an edge of wonder and a touch of unease. He coughed to clear his throat, but to no avail. He didn't sound good. "This should be a generic prisoner containment cell, considering this damn scratchy –" – Kuroba was _panting_ for breath – "– straw mat here, so why is it so big?"

Conan winced as he jerked the back of his head sharply away from the stone wall he had been endeavouring to lean against, having forgotten his head injury before snapping at the magician he couldn't see. "How are you feeling today, Kuroba-nii-san?" the detective asked stonily. "Dry throat? Weakness? Increased respiration is a definite. And by the way you've been referring to me like someone from the same age group as yourself: confusion? Symptoms of dehydration."

The magician lashed back at once, never one to pass up a challenge. "How about you, little tantei? You've been straining to see the mat not thirty centimetres from your face. Even without glasses, your vision can't, in all probability, be that bad, in view of your age. And, of course, it's perfect light in here."

Conan felt the blood being sucked from his cheeks, but his vision didn't swirl before his eyes. "_What_," the detective managed to clip out.

Silence. Then a deadpan realisation from Kuroba.

"You're blind."

&

Kaito took a few deeper breaths, trying to placate the rising nausea before opening his eyes. He shivered. He really needed something to drink and soon. He felt awful. The magician blinked stars from his vision to check on the cell's smaller occupant. Tantei-kun was still lying dishevelled where he had slumped defeated, arms wrapped protectively around his small frame, facing away from the magician, facing a shining granite wall. There was not much else to do.

The cell was stern solid stone on three sides; the fourth of metals bars set so closely that even a child smaller than scrawny Conan wouldn't be able to slip through at all. Outside ... Kaito didn't know. There was one long skylight in the hallway outside their cell and after that another line of cells, wreathed in darkness by the angle of the sun. Every now and then though, Kaito would hear inhuman bone-chilling screams and shrieks from the other cells, which would awaken an entire cacophony through the block. At least it didn't outright stink, but it was terrifyingly animalistic all the same. It gave Kaito an atrocious headache.

The magician's lips tightened a fraction. What were they going to do now? Their captors had obviously not thought an x-ray scan necessary, so Kaito still had a few key instruments on his self, but on the most part he had been stripped clean. Oh well, he would rely on his abundant natural talent, as usual. And tantei-kun still had his killer modified shoes, but no soccer ball shooting belt, bow-tie or glasses. Or stun-gun watch. Damn it – that could have been their ace in the hole. They'd just have to make do then. Kaito glanced over at the shrunken Shinichi Kudo again. They always did. Both of them. The magician's blue-purple eyes quickly flicked back to their prison entrance even before the clacking footsteps of high-heels roused the captives into a symphony of howls. Someone was coming.

Kaito rose to his feet. The head rush was instantaneous and ruthless.

The cell was a block of blinding white that Kaito couldn't blink away for once, and he vaguely felt his left hand scraping lightly against the cold stone wall to find a grip as he went down. Then just calm nothing. Next thing he knew, he was pushing itchy straw mat away from his face with tantei-kun calling his name. And now the silhouette of someone in a lab coat was standing before their jail unit.

"Hello, subjects 8A27, 8A48."

She wore square rimless spectacles that matched the certain set of her jaw. Her steady grey eyes shone with cool merriment that seemed ever so out of place in their immediate surroundings. She looked in her early thirties. A palatable green turtleneck protruded from her white lapels. A high orange-red ponytail brushed the collar.

"You may call me May," she introduced nonchalantly. She then tapped her clipboard, frowning at Kaito, murmuring absently to herself. "It seems the drug we used on 8A48 didn't work the way it was supposed to. The effects have not worn off. It has been much too long. Unconsciousness, skin flushing, probably a migraine telling from all that wincing ... The concentration of the dose surely couldn't have ..."

Kaito blinked. He had been fed a defective substance. Maybe he should just be grateful he wasn't tantei-kun's size. The shadows sure had a thing for faulty drugs.

"And 8A27 seems to be suffering from transient cortical blindness due to mild head trauma during transportation. Will probably be able to see again in a few hours ... Must check on that though ..."

Conan frowned. Still not dead yet, what the hell.

She tapped her teeth with the pen once before stopping herself. "There is some information I have been instructed to convey to you, pertaining to..." She took a look at her notes, flipped a few pages. Then some more. "Ah, '_pertaining to their heritage and the bloodline. Let the subjects know that cooperation with the Project will be duly rewarded and no disobedience will be tolerated.'_"

She stopped reading from her papers and looked up at them. "Cooperation, huh? For some reason, I don't think we'll get that out of the pair of you. However, there will be other things ... Now, stand up when I talk to you!" she barked almost angrily. "Do you know what you are ...?! ...No, I guess you don't ... I'm here to tell you _that_..."

Strange woman. Conan raised an eyebrow. Kaito rolled his eyes. Neither of them rose to their feet. She glared at them in the face coldly.

"So it's true. Your progenitors really were worthless good-for-nothings. They taught you _nothing_."

Kaito got through half a fiercely outraged yell before he gasped harshly, painfully, falling back on his heels, clutching his neck – or rather, what was _around_ his neck. Conan, however, had made to jump at their cell's metal bars but immediately drew back as if slapped by an invisible hand. The detective writhed on the mat, mouthing agonising ghost screams. The plastic collars pulsed blue once before returning to its usual white.

May's lips were pulled back in a sneer. "Either you do as you are told or you both get electrocuted again. _Both_ of you. Now, _stand_," she commanded.

Slowly – Kaito much too unsteadily – the boys obeyed.

&

The door to the laboratory banged open loudly. The Hakubas _never_ abused doors like that, so it must be an intruder. Saguru lifted his eyes from a beaker slowly, in absolutely no rush. After all, deducing from how idiotically _loud_ that entrance had been, there was no way that those men in black from before were back.

Barely had the echoes of the door faded away when an unceremonious voice announced, "Okay, English asshole, how did you know what was about to happen at that heist? Before even the _Kid_?"

The blond detective removed his protective eyewear, placing it orderly on a bench. Still not speaking, he pulled a set of keys from his pocket and proceeded to unlock a hefty looking filing cabinet.

"Watcha up to now?" Heiji asked suspiciously, as if he wasn't the one who had just barged uninvited into the house.

Once the drawer was open, Saguru pulled out a nondescript folder. He threw it with a _thwack!_ down on the bench that separated them. Heiji read the label and his heart seized. Their eyes met – burnt sienna against sea-green.

The English detective finally spoke, tone starkly contrasting how Heiji's had been earlier. Polar opposites, both of them. However, there was strength in that. Great strength.

"I shall share all I know with you, Hattori-kun," Saguru avowed ascetically, "once you tell me why Conan Edogawa has all the characteristics of a particular seventeen-year old except the physical appearance. Tell me that, Hattori-kun, and I shall tell you all."

Saguru watched him keenly. Heiji swallowed and wetted his lips. And began a tale that wasn't his to tell. The tale of the Great Detective of the East.

Things were about to spiral dangerously out of control.

Elsewhere, another story was unfolding, this one delving into an even more startling past.

"The Aryan Project. One of the longest-running scientific endeavours in the Black Organisation's history," May began. "And you two are the last remnants of this ambitious Project. You hold within you the past, and – quite possibly – the future of our Organisation. Because the Aryan Project revolves around a single gene. A gene that both of you carry."

What is this?! Conan thought, heart pounding.

&


End file.
